Riding The Lightning
by Hikari-and-Yami
Summary: Its days like this that I hate my job. "You think she was their last victim, Atem?" I hear myself ask him. The piercing red eyes of my one-time lover focus on my face. "That's what we're here to find out," he says to me. YYY minor SJ RB
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I own nothing nor do I profit off of this story.

* * *

_**Riding The Lightning**_

_Prologue_

* * *

_For such a beautiful summer day, it seems like kind of a waste for all of us to be spending it inside. At least, that was my opinion. I turn my eyes to gaze out at the flowing scenery from behind a plate of glass. Then smiling, I lift my finger and tap on the car window, right where I can see the reflection of my eyes looking back at me. They've always been my best feature, so I'm told, because of their unique color – amethyst._

_When I hear my co-worker's voice fill the car with a single question, I bring my attention back to the matter at hand. "Bakura and Ryou Lilaski butchered, what, twelve girls?" he asks aloud._

_I sigh and look at the man sitting beside me in the back seat. He has tumbling curls of black hair and hypnotizing jade eyes that the department uses to charm young girls into turning in their boyfriends. "Thirteen, Otogi – counting the girl that was just found."_

_"Rebecca Hawkins," a deeper voice says. It's Atem, who is sitting diagonal to me in the passenger seat. We have a very confusing relationship to say the least. "She disappeared ten years ago," Atem continues, as he rakes a hand through his bleached bangs and pushes them back into the rest of his dark hair, mixing them together. "They buried her under Ryou's sister's living room. The local police found her body yesterday."_

_Its days like this that I hate my job. "You think she was their last victim, Atem?" I hear myself ask him._

_The piercing red eyes of my one-time lover focus on my face. "That's what we're here to find out," he says to me._

_I nod at him and turn back to the window, once again considering a career change. But my fate had long been decided and my path chosen. I never expected to be a criminologist, nor did I ever think I could make it in the FBI. But here I am; part of the best team in the entire unit. There's me and Jou, of course. We're the newbies. We both started working around the same time last year and – after proving ourselves on an assignment in South Beach, Florida, that we had worked together – we both were promoted to the B.A.U., or Behavior Analysis Unit, to work with Seto Kaiba and his team._

_Otogi is relatively new to the team as well – a transfer from the FBI department in Quantico, Virginia. But he has five years in the department under his belt, so his status ranks higher than my own. Then there's Atem – brilliant, but easily provoked. He had his share of citations for his temper, but nothing concerning enough to kick him out of the Bureau. Not that I ever thought he would be._

_Anzu is the only woman on the team, but she can take down someone as well as any of us could. She's outspoken, ambitious, and a bit headstrong. Not the best qualities to have if she ever were to go undercover, but she made one hell of a profiler. Then Malik, Anzu's field partner and best friend, who is, by all means, a genius. He sees details and makes connections others can't. In retrospect, he's relatively withdrawn, but when on a case, he won't stop until he's done all he can._

_And then lastly, of course, there's -_

_"Kaiba," I say, directing my following question to the driver, "How much longer until we get there?"_

_The brunet doesn't take his eyes off the road. "A few minutes."_

_"Good," Atem comments. "The sooner we get this over with, the better."_

_Now Kaiba is probably one of the best profilers the FBI has ever seen. Years in the unit had conditioned him to remain emotionally disconnected from all of his cases - something he had taken with him into his out-of-work life as well. Being as he was, it's easier for him to focus on the concrete details, and not get caught up in the moment like his cousin, Atem, so often did. He's strict, and the definition of a disciplinarian - an all-around great leader._

_Out of the corner of my eye, I watch Atem take out a photo from his own folder. "Ryou Lilaski," he says, almost as if to himself._

_I sit up and survey the picture in Atem's hand more closely. It's a face-shot of a young white-haired man, with eyes as round as quarters and a light coffee brown. He wore a smile, ear to ear, so wide and genuine that it was hard to believe that this was the face of a killer._

_"Media calls him the Ice King," Otogi mentions off-handedly._

_Atem nods. "That's how they interpreted his demeanor during the trail."_

_"He killed his adoptive daughter and twelve teenage girls." Otogi glowers, green eyes staring at the back of Atem's headrest. "You would think he would show a little bit more compassion."_

_I close my eyes and rest my head back against the seat. "He only confessed to the murder of his daughter, Ana," I point out, quietly._

_"He hasn't cooperated with any request to interview him," Kaiba says, sparing us all few words. He never did speak much during car rides._

_"Well," Atem says, putting the photo away, "if he doesn't talk now, then he's going to take that story with him to the grave."_

_As soon as the words exit his mouth, Kaiba says exactly what everybody else in the car is thinking. "I think we'll find that Rebecca Hawkins was in no means Bakura's last victim."_

_I try not to sigh again, but the reality of that statement is too real to ignore. I glance out of the side mirror to the car behind us and smile._

_I hope everyone else is as excited as we are._

_~O~_

_"There's nothing here about the dynamics of Ryou and Bakura's relationship," Malik says, flipping through the file in his hand._

_"The state isn't interested in dynamics or profiles," Anzu responds, glancing in the rearview mirror at the other. "They just want this case to go away. They were caught, they confessed, they got the death penalty."_

_"You guys do realize that visitin' death row is not part of my job description?"_

_Malik sighs, placing the less-than-helpful folder beside him, before looking up at the less-than-excited man in the passenger seat. "Jou, this will be the first serial killer couple ever reported for VICAP."_

_"They slaughtered thirteen people with blond hair. Hello?" Jou says, lifting up his bangs._

_"All of the victims were female, Jou," Anzu comforts, soothing the other's concerns. "And besides," she continues, looking up at the barb-wired fence in front of them. "We're here."_

_"What the hell?" is Jou's next remark, as he looks around at the protestors surrounding them. "Who are these people?"_

_"They call themselves, "The Followers of Bakura," Malik's voice floats up from the backseat. "Twelve women who are protesting Bakura's execution."_

_"Are they wearin' blond wigs? Man, every psycho has a fan base, huh?"_

_"Mhm." Anzu scoffs, "Should we tell them they're missing one?"_

_Malik glances out of the window, watching the women, as the guards guide their two cars inside of the gates. "At least."_


	2. Chapter 2

I just wanted to say that I am overly excited that a lot of you watch Criminal Minds, given that it is my favorite show. Always wanted to do a CSI/Law&Order crime kind of fic, but they're not very easy to write for me because things shift around so much in shows, trying to get everybody's input in, but I just couldn't say no to this one. So I do hope you all continue to enjoy this story.

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Boo. :(

* * *

_**Riding The Lightning**_

_"Whoso sheddeth man's blood by man shall his blood be shed." - Genesis 9:6_

* * *

"In 1985, there was a string of missing girls reported in Northern Florida. Police subsequently received an anonymous call from a man claiming to have seen Bakura with some of the girls."

In the open space of the large conference room, Kaiba's voice echos off the walls. He stands in the very front, Atem leaning by the wall next to him. The rest of us are scattered around the room, mixing in with the local and state police, as our two leaders divulge further into the case at hand.

"Did they ever find out who the anonymous man was?" one of the officers asks.

"No," is Kaiba's curt reply.

"After the tip, police interviewed Bakura," Atem continues, pushing himself up off the wall, "Also present were Ryou and their two year-old adoptive daughter, Ana. Police were suspicious, so they came back three hours later with a search warrant only to find out that Ana had vanished. They had also eventually found the dismembered bodies of twelve missing girls buried in the ground underneath Bakura's workshop. Fearing that the police were on to them, Bakura assumed Ana would only slow them down, so he ordered Ryou to kill her and dispose of the body."

"Ryou confessed to killing Ana, but never admitted to his roles in the deaths of the girls," I hear myself say, aloud.

Everyone looks at me, and I almost wish I hadn't said anything. "He never denied it either," Otogi counters from across the room, and suddenly the attention is off me and on him, to which I am thankful for.

"Well according to Bakura," Kaiba says, bringing all eyes back to him. "Ryou was fully complicit in the targeting, abduction, and murder of all twelve…well, now thirteen victims."

"Prison records show that Bakura is a sexual psychopath," Malik points out, skimming through a thick binder in his hands. "They were inconclusive on Ryou, though. They said that his demeanor was more like that of a war victim."

"And like all sexual psychopaths," Atem picks up, "Bakura is obsessed with the idea of the complete possession of his victims. He's shown no remorse or guilt."

"Well, Bakura said that Ryou was like a possession," I say with more confidence than before. "Someone he could control and dominate."

"Just so we're clear, they've agreed to these interviews?"

There's a pregnant pause, in which everyone stares over at the man standing in the threshold of the main doorway. "Yes," Kaiba says, surveying the suit-clad individual. "And you are?"

"My name's Dean. I'm their appeals attorney."

I watch as Jou hands over a piece of paper to Kaiba, who then passes it on to the newcomer. "Not only have they agreed to them. They were initially requested by them."

As if not believing Kaiba, the attorney scans over both sides of the paper, his eyes lingering on his clients' signatures for a moment, before looking back up at the other. "Yeah, I can't get them a stay on execution."

"We won't need one," Kaiba replies. His eyes, a stern icy blue, flash over to his cousin. "Atem interview Bakura. I'll play second chair."

A muscle in Atem's cheek tics. "I'm not going to get anything new."

"Find a new way to ask," is the retort. "Malik, Anzu, 835 East Hope Street. Bakura and Ryou's home. It's due for demolition. Take a look around. Bakura's workshop is in the back. Yuugi, I want you and Otogi to talk to Ryou. Jou will stay here and watch the interviews from the computer room."

"Fine by me," I hear Jou mumble beside me. But I don't pay him much mind, because just then Otogi is beside me.

"Ready to go?" he asks me.

I look up at him and nod my head. "Yeah."

~O~

Death Row is the section of a prison that houses inmates found guilty of a capital crime, separating them from the rest of the prisoners until their execution - which in the state of Florida was still the electric chair. I knew this and, though it was not the most humane way to go, I realized that some of the prisoners behind the bars Otogi and I walked by deserved it. It all just came down to which ones.

"Ryou Lilaski," someone says down the hall. "For the next 36 hours you will remain in this cell. You're personal effects have been placed in here, accordingly. You will remain in this cell till the hour of execution. Your last meal cannot exceed twenty dollars."

As Otogi and I get closer, I recognize the prison warden, who we had been introduced to on our arrival. He's standing outside of the last cell on the right, reading from a pre-written script. "It will be a full moon tomorrow," a voice says from inside the cell. It's low and quiet, enough so that I can just barely make out the words being spoken. "Is there any chance I can see it?"

I see the warden's shoulders slacken, and the side of his face dents in a little as he bites the inside of his cheek. "That's against regulations," he answers, though his tone is different.

"Oh," the other voice says, solemnly. "Okay."

The warden looks just about ready to say something else when he sees us out of the corner of his eye. "You have visitors, Ryou." He gestures to Otogi and I, then calls down the hall, "Open on nine."

It only takes a second for the bars in the cell to slide open and, after assuring the warden that we do not need any further assistance, we both take a step inside the small four-by-four. That is the first time I ever saw Ryou Lilaski. Yes, I had seen him on the news and in papers and department files, but never had I seen him in person. His hair is a lot longer than I remember from the photos, and it falls down the side of his face and back. He's wearing your typical prison orange jumpsuit and, when we introduce ourselves, he pushes his grayish bangs out of his eyes - a tired brown - and smiles just a tiny bit.

"These are beautiful," I tell him, referring to the paintings hanging around his room. "Accomplished work."

"I've had plenty of time." Ryou says softly. "So, what is it you want to know?"

"I think it's time the mothers of those girls learn why their children had to die." Otogi says to him. "Don't you?"

If I hadn't been watching, I wouldn't have believed it possible - but at that moment, I saw Ryou's eyes dim just a little more.


	3. Chapter 3

Bakura has a tall, yet thin frame, and his hair falls long past his shoulders – almost to his waist, spiked and all. But it's his eyes that captures everyone's attention; brown so dark, they're almost black. Atem watches, as the guards sit Bakura down in the seat across from his and connect the chains that circle his wrists and ankles to a clasp under the table.

"Who are you?" Bakura says to him, his voice thick with an accent.

"I'm Agent Sennen," Atem introduces, quietly. He nods his head to the brunet standing by the door. "That is Agent Kaiba."

"FBI?"

Atem nods. "Yes."

"Cool." Bakura grins at them. "You want to see a trick?" he asks Atem, pulling a stack of cards from his pocket. He holds them up in his hand. "Pick a card."

Atem blinks at him in annoyance. "You're a diagnosed psychopath," he says, leaning back in his chair.

"Sexual psychopath," Bakura corrects with a smirk. "Now pick a card."

There's a small pause, in which time Atem narrows his eyes at the other. "How many other girls did you kill?"

Bakura stops, a glint flashing through his eyes, as he examines the agent in front of him. "Do you ever smile?" he asks, his lips pulling at the corners. "I mean, it's hard to trust a guy who never smiles."

"Are there more bodies?" Atem questions again.

The severity in Atem's voice is enough to wipe the cynical grin off of Bakura's lips. "More bodies?" he repeats.

Bakura takes a second to glance at Kaiba, the brunet's face as emotionless as stone, before looking back at Atem. Then, he leans over the table, as far as he can until the chains stop him. "If I told you that," he whispers quietly, staring directly into Atem's eyes, "what would I have left for myself?"

"You can help these families get closure before you die," is Atem's response.

"Oh." Bakura sits back in his chair and looks up at the ceiling, thinking. After another second, he shrugs his shoulders, nonchalant. "Pass."

Atem sighs and looks over his shoulder at Kaiba. "Come on," he hears Bakura say to him. "Pick a card. It's a good one, I promise."

Glaring, he turns back to Bakura, who just smiles in return. "Just. One. Card," the psychopath murmurs.

~O~

It's the last house to the right on East Hope Street. The once white paint is now a fading yellow, and graffiti lines the visible doors and windows with its ugly mark. "I studied this case," Malik tells Anzu, as they duck under the broken fence surrounding the yard. He plays with the old crime scene tape that hangs from one of the trees and sighs. "I'll never forget it."

Anzu follows Malik into the garage in the back and says, "I'm surprised this house is still standing."

"Hm." Malik surveys the room, as his memory begins to re-build the garage to how it looked ten years ago. "This is where the workshop stood," he says, standing over the middle of the room. "There was an arch right here. He used his workspace as a torture room. Marks on the bodies matched many of his tools."

He points over to another side of the room. "He used a bench saw to dismember the bodies, and then he buried them under the floor…" Malik bends down and touches the ground, his eyes seeing the old wooden floorboard it used to be, instead of the bottomless pit it was now. "He buried them here until he ran out of room."

"Well," Anzu says, pensively, "We know that Bakura was abused as a child. What about Ryou?"

"His sister refused to give any testimony regarding their childhood," Malik responds, standing back upright. "In fact, she refused to talk at all."

Anzu nods. "Her brother's execution is in 24 hours. Maybe she's willing to talk now. Where does she live?"

"Across the street."

"You're kidding."

Malik shakes his head. "Can't say that I am."

"Okay," Anzu blows out. "Well that's good for us. I imagine that it's been hell for her though."

"Yeah," he sighs. "The hatred for her and her family is as fresh as it was ten years ago."

With a small nod, the blue-eyed agent gestures for the other to follow her back out to the front. Once they cross the street, it isn't hard to figure out which house belongs to the inmate's sister, given the '_Ryou will burn in Hell_' scribbled across the porch stairs.

"Do you think she's here?" Anzu asks her partner, approaching the house. She knocks lightly on the door and glances at the other.

"I –"

"Who is it?"

At the female voice, Malik gives Anzu a look that clearly reads, 'I guess you got your answer.'

"FBI, Ma'am," Anzu says loudly, ignoring Malik. "We need to speak with you."

It takes a moment, but the front door creaks open slowly and a woman peeks past the chain still connecting the door to its frame. "Why?" she asks them, cautiously.

"We're from the Behavioral Analysis Unit," Malik clarifies. "Are you Amane?"

The woman nods, her eyes regarding him carefully. "Yes, I am."

"We wanted to ask you a few questions about your brother," Anzu tells her.

"I see." She closes the door enough to unhook the chain, and then opens it wide - a signal for the two guests to enter. "Follow me," she says, leading them into the kitchen. She flashes them one more nervous look, before sitting down at the table, inviting the two agents to do the same. With a polite 'thank you', Anzu settles down in the chair across from the cerulean-haired woman, while Malik politely declines and takes to circling the small room.

"So, what more do you need to know? My brother and his son-of-a-bitch husband buried a 13 year old girl under my floor."

"Ma'am, Ryou agreed to meet with our colleagues to talk about why they killed those girls," Anzu informs her. "We'd like some background information if you don't mind."

Standing a few feet away from them, Malik observes the kitchen threshold. "Extensive remodeling," he comments. "Bakura built the original extension? I see he liked arches."

"Teenage girls is what he liked," Amane says, her tone bitter.

"How was Ryou growing up?" Anzu asks, bringing the focus back to the matter at hand.

"Fine," Amane answers with a small shrug. "Until he met Bakura, that is. He was shy, quiet, and so smart."

"And his relationship with his father?" Malik inquires.

Amane hesitates, leaving Anzu to ask more directly, "Was Ryou ever abused?"

"He was strict," Amane assents. "He was a military man. They… didn't always see eye to eye on things." She sighs and crosses her arms, rubbing her thin biceps. "But that's all history. Our father's dead, and Ryou's about to die."

"Amane," Anzu says with a soft voice. "If we better understand the dynamics of Ryou's relationships, we can get a better idea of why and what actually happened."

"Dynamics?" she repeats.

"Well," Malik replies, looking at her, "it might answer why Bakura never killed Ryou. They shared something."

"They shared pain," Anzu continues. "Now, exactly, how strict was your father? How did he discipline Ryou? Was he physical?"

"He was a mean bastard," Amane responds, her gaze falling to the table. "But he only hurt our mother. That's why she left us."

Anzu lets her eyes switch over to Malik for a moment, who gestures for her to change the topic. "An anonymous caller tipped the police off about Bakura," Anzu says, complying. "Was it you?"

"No," Amane answers, immediately. "But I know who it was." Sparking both of the agents' interest, she stands up and walks over to the counter, taking out an envelope from one of the drawers. "This came this morning," she says aloud, passing it over to Malik, who pulls out the letter and opens it along the creases.

"What's it say?" Anzu asks the other, watching Malik scan the paper.

Lavender eyes, full of surprise, look up at her. "It's a statement of innocence."


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: **What an old story. Time to put some life back into it.

* * *

_**Riding the Lightning**_

* * *

In a poorly lit interrogation room, Ryou sits patiently across from us, a timeworn wooden table separating the prisoner from me and Otogi. His cooperativeness with the interview process prompts our decision to have the guards uncuff him, leaving him free to roam the room as he talks to us. He does this briefly, before choosing on his own to sit back down at the table. As Otogi is asking him questions, I am leaning back in my chair and observing his reactions carefully; years of experience in the field cementing in me the importance of nonverbal cues and body language. Throughout the interview, Ryou presents with a flat and sad affect, his voice mostly monotone, yet strangely pleasant. The smile he plasters on his face is broken in several places, but he still manages to wear it with grace.

"What did you see in Bakura?" Otogi asks him.

Ryou glances away for a moment, thinking. Then, back to us. "Freedom."

Otogi lifts an eyebrow. "Freedom from what?"

As the line of questioning continues, I hear Jou's voice crackle over my earpiece. "Hey, Yuugi."

I press the small device further into my ear canal in an attempt to hear him better. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Otogi do the same. "Hey Jou," I reply, speaking into the small mic tucked in my shirt cuff. Ryou has already paused mid-response to focus on me. "What's up?"

"I have Anzu on the line. She says it's urgent."

I flash Otogi a look, and he nods. "Patch her through," I tell Jou.

There's a few moments of white noise, followed by a small burst of static. "Yuugi." The pitch in Anzu's voice is higher than usual. "We're at the sister's house. She gave us a letter I want to read you."

I slide my eyes back to Ryou and notice that he's watching me with a mixture of concern and confusion. I hold his gaze and, quietly, say "Read the letter, Anzu."

As Anzu's voice drifts into my ear, I repeat the words aloud for Ryou to hear. "Amane, I know how difficult this must be," I start. "Things between us were never what they should be between a brother and sister."

Recognition and perhaps a bit of panic lights up Ryou's eyes, and he propels out of his chair to move towards me. "That is a private letter," he says and, for the first time since I've met him, I hear anger in his voice.

I ignore his indirect plea to stop. "I want you to know that the best part of me is now in a better place than you or I will ever be."

"Stop it!" He reaches me before the guards can get to him and yanks the device out of my ear.

"I am responsible for the deaths of those girls," Otogi continues, picking up where I left off, "I neglected my duties as a human being but, more importantly, as a father."

Ryou pivots on his heel and makes a dash towards Otogi, but before he can take more than two steps, the guards have his arms behind his back and push him down onto the table, face first. "Take it easy," I warn them, motioning for them to loosen their grip on Ryou. "Everything's fine. Right, Ryou?"

But even as I ask the question, I can identify the distant look in Ryou's eyes and realize that he's not really listening anymore. The sporadic streams of tears falling down the sides of his face tell me more than his entire verbal interview had thus far. I wave the guards away and, just barely touching Ryou's arm, guide him to sit back down in a chair.

"Ryou," I call to him again, and his eyes are suddenly on me. "You neglected your duty?" I repeat, as his tears continue to fall. "That doesn't make you responsible. You didn't kill those girls."

Otogi, who had, up until this point, been cautiously watching our interaction, asks him, "Why didn't you say this in court?"

Ryou's shoulders slacken, his whole body deflating. He angles his head down to the side, shielding his eyes with a curtain of gray locks of hair. "I knew he brought women back to his workshop," he whispers, the pain in his face almost tangible.

Otogi walks closer to us and bends down at the knees, so that he is now looking up at Ryou's face. "That's a long way from knowing he was killing them."

"Don't you get it?" Ryou's voice floats around us. "They died as a result of my neglect."

I can't decipher the wave of emotions inside of me. I don't know how to feel; only how to verbalize it. "This letter suggests to me," I say, placing my hand on Ryou's shoulder, "that an innocent man is about to be executed for a crime he did not commit."

~O~

The computer screen blurs for a moment, and Atem uses this hiccup in the videotape to blink a few times, eyes dry from staring at the screen too long. Even from the crappy quality of the recording, he easily recognized the conflict of emotions in Yuugi's face and heard the echos of frustration and sadness in his voice. The image and the sound triggered feelings inside of him that he had spent much of the last few months trying to forget. He wanted to reach out to his ex-lover and comfort him in ways he hadn't been able to for a long time now. But the present needed his attention, as evident by Kaiba's _very_ intentional cough that brought him right back into the computer room, standing next to his cousin and across from Jou.

"I can tell you right now," Dean says, looking at the three FBI agents in front of him, "it's not enough to get a stay of execution."

"You want facts?" Kaiba gestures with an open hand towards Atem. "Go."

With a nod, Atem clears his throat. "Human sexuality is a complex dynamic of three components: biological, physiological, and emotional. Bakura's needs were formed by the emotional and sexual abuse that he received by the hands of his mother. Long-term repetitive abuse formed the template of his love map."

"Something we refer to as a signature," Kaiba interjects.

"So, since Bakura was an only child, he was alone when the abuse occurred." Atem lifts a shoulder. "Thus, in order for Bakura to fulfill his fantasies, he has to be alone with his victims."

"Also, when you two were interviewin' him," Jou adds from his seat in front of the computers, "he said, 'if I told you that, what would I have left for _myself_?'". Jou points a single finger up towards the ceiling. "He said, 'myself.' If Ryou had been present durin' these murders, it would've destroyed Bakura's fantasy."

Dean hesitates. "Yeah, but Ryou still confessed to killing his daughter."

"This is true," Kaiba assents. "But after speaking with the two field agents who visited Ryou's sister, we are also convinced that Ryou was the anonymous caller that implicated Bakura in the murders."

"Guilt-ridden," Atem says, motioning towards the computer screen that focused on Ryou, the prisoner still sobbing next to Otogi and Yuugi. "Filled with remorse, Ryou called the police. That's not the profile of a man who would then kill his child."

Dean's lips tighten into a thin line, as the attorney shakes his head with a sigh. "It's not enough."

"What else do ya need?" Jou asks with discernible frustration.

"Evidence."

With a firm grasp on the politics involved in this case, Kaiba nods his understanding. "If we could prove that Bakura killed their daughter, Ana, would that get Ryou a stay?"

Dean's response is quick. "Absolutely."

"Okay." Kaiba's eyes find Jou. "Pull everyone from their locations, blondie. Get them here. Now."

~O~

"Obviously he hasn't opened up to you two. He's an alpha male – he is not going to respond the way we want him to when we send in two other alpha males to interview him." Anzu spouts all this with an annoyed tone, clearly frustrated with herself for not realizing this earlier. She paces the room that is currently occupied by her fellow teammates, all the while scratching her chin.

"How about you go in?" Otogi suggests with a shrug. His long ebony curls brush against my shoulder as he settles down on the couch next to me.

Anzu shakes her head and audibly exhales. "He would be bored by me – I don't match either of his two types."

"She's right." Kaiba pushes off the wall and comes to stand in the center of the room. "To be honest, I think there's only one person in this room that has a chance of appealing to him."

Suddenly, his china blue eyes are on my face and, one by one, I see everyone in the room turn to look at me. "_Me_?" I don't even pretend to hide my surprise. "I look _nothing_ like his victim type."

"We don't want to give him someone that he sees as a victim, Yuugi," Malik pipes in from his seated position on the carpeted floor. He glances from me back down to the papers surrounding him. "If you looked like one of his victims - blond and female - he'd have absolutely no respect for you. No, see, the only person he's ever actually felt any sort of connection with was Ryou – who, up until this trial, was regarded as a gentle and kind-hearted man with an almost childlike appearance. He may find some semblence of that in you."

Atem, who had remained quiet this entire time, is watching me steadily. The fire in his eyes brings a burst of heat to my face. "They're right," he finally says. "If anyone can lower Bakura's guard, it's you." He shifts his gaze and looks off to the far wall. "I'll be going in with you."

Not a request, but a fact. "Okay," I blow out with a breath.

"Hey guys." All eyes are on Jou now, the blond pointing towards the large overhead television screen. "Listen," he instructs, turning up the volume so that we can all hear the reporter on the local news station.

_"Tension is mounting here as the FBI's BAU team continues to conduct a series of deathbed interviews in an attempt to find if there are any more victims. It is now rumored that they are also calling for a stay of execution."_

"Who the _hell_ told them that?" Atem all but hisses.

"It doesn't matter." Kaiba's voice is calm and immediately extinguishes Atem's fire. "We have twenty-four hours before their executions." He nods towards me and Atem. "Go."

~O~

Bakura's grin turns wicked when Atem walks into the interrogation room. "You're back," he welcomes, lit cigarette in hand and card deck still on the table. The chains connecting his cuffs to the clasp underneath the table only extend so far, forcing Bakura to duck his head every time he wants to take a drag of his cigarette. He exhales a cloud of smoke, his eyes trained on Atem's rigid form. "Oh, I know, I know," he says to Atem. "One day these are gonna kill me."

Atem's expression is blank, and he slowly blinks at Bakura, causing the prisoner to laugh out loud. "Oh come on, Agent Sennen," he chuckles. "_That_ was funny."

Again, Atem doesn't respond, but something in him tightens when the door creaks open behind him. He watches Bakura's face shift from one full of amusement to one dripping with an almost morbid awe.

"Well, well, well." Bakura says, when I enter the room. He clicks his tongue against the roof of his mouth and scans me up and down, making me shiver under his undressing gaze. He begins to stand up, but Atem is hovering over him in an instant.

"Sit down."

"But – "

"_Sit_."

I resist the urge to flinch at Atem's tone, but Bakura just looks amused. He hesitates, but opts to comply with Atem's demand and lowers himself back down to his chair. His eyes find mine again. "And just who are you, my violet-eyed angel?"

"My friends call me Yuugi."

"Yuugi," Bakura murmurs, playing with the name on his tongue.

I sit down in a chair across from Bakura, crossing my arms over my chest. "You're not my friend," I snap. "You can call me Agent Motou."

Bakura winces playfully. "Ouch," he mouths. Then, he gives Atem a wink. "That was a nice touch, bringing in this beauty."

The growl in Atem's throat was quiet, but I could hear it as loud as day. I almost want to reach out to him, touch his arm with my fingertips, and assure him that I am just fine. But the professional role I'm in forces me to ignore Atem's clear objection to this interview. And so, instead, I just straighten in my seat.

"You really want to know if there were any others, don't you?" Bakura asks, still speaking to Atem. He gives his shoulders a little shrug. "I'll tell you what. Draw poker." He picks up the deck from the table and shuffles the cards in his hands a bit. "You win, I'll give you another girl."

Slowly, Atem sits down next to me. "So, there are more," he reframes.

Bakura just tilts his head. "Do we have a bet?"

Atem is quiet for a moment, pensive. "What if you win?"

"If I win," Bakura's smile is malicious, his eyes glinting, "I get to smell Yuugi's hair."

Atem's entire body stiffens. "No."

"Come on," Bakura responds with a wave of his hand. "All he has to do is lean over, and I can smell his hair."

"_No_."

Bakura inhales another drag from his cigarette. "I thought you wanted answers," he antagonizes.

"Go to hell." Atem lifts out of his seat a bit, looking as if he's about to pull the plug on this.

"It's okay, Atem." I say to stop him.

Both of the other men at the table seem suprised by my comment. Bakura recovers first. "You see that?" He smirks, gesturing with an open hand towards me. "It's okay, Atem."

Atem takes his eyes off of Bakura for the first time to look at me, asking me a silent question. _Are you sure? _

I offer him a small smile, and he takes that as a yes. Returning his attention back to the psychopath, he says simply, "Yuugi deals."


End file.
